DESCRIPTION OF EGGS AND LARVAE OF SCALED SARDINE, 



HARENGULA JAGUANA' ^ 



Edward D. Houde,^ William J. Richards,'' and Vishnu P. Saksena^ 



ABSTRACT 



Eggs and larvae of scaled sardine, Harengula jaguana, were described from specimens reared 

 in the laboratory. Meristics, morphometries, osteology, and pigmentation were examined as 

 development proceeded. Transformation of larvae to the juvenile stage was complete at 22 to 24 

 mm standard length. During transformation outstanding features included forward movement 

 of the dorsal fin, shortening of the gut, and forward movement of the anal fin. Eggs and larvae 

 of scaled sardine were compared with those of other clupeids that may occur in the same areas. An 

 illustrated series of scaled sardine eggs and larvae, including details of the caudal fin, was presented to 

 show changes that occur during development. 



Scaled sardines, Harengula jaguana Poey, are 

 common clupeids in the tropical western Atlantic 

 (Rivas, 1963). Until recently they were known 

 as H. pensacolae Goode and Bean, 1879, but 

 Whitehead (1973) has concluded that the correct 

 name for the species is Harengula jaguana Poey, 

 1865. Scaled sardines prefer coastal habitats 

 and have been reported from New Jersey to Brazil; 

 they are abundant in the Gulf of Mexico (Briggs, 

 1958; Rivas, 1963; Berry, 1964b). Despite their 

 common occurrence, larvae have not been de- 

 scribed. Matsuura (1972) has described arti- 

 ficially fertilized and planktonic eggs of this 

 species. Fecundity, maturation, and spawning of 

 scaled sardines recently were reported by Mar- 

 tinez (1972). Eggs have been collected in south 

 Florida, and the larvae reared to juvenile sizes 

 in the laboratory (Houde and Palko, 1970; 

 Detwyler and Houde, 1970; Saksena and Houde, 

 1972). Eggs and larvae from these experiments 

 have provided us with material to describe early 

 development. 



Scaled sardines support a small bait fishery 

 in south Florida and are important forage for 



'Contribution No. 1786, Rosenstiel School of Marine and At- 

 mospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33149. 



^Contribution No. 235, Southeast Fisheries Center, National 

 Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, Miami, FL 33149. 



''Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, 

 University of Miami, Division of Fisheries and Applied 

 Estuarine Ecology, 10 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, FL 

 33149. 



■•Southeast Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries 

 Service, NOAA, 75 Virginia Beach Drive, Miami, FL 33149. 



^Department of Biology, Muskingum College, New Con- 

 cord, OH 43762. 



predatory fishes like Spanish mackerel, Scombero- 

 niorus maculatus (Klima, 1959). They are caught 

 for human consumption throughout the West 

 Indies and are canned in Cuba and Venezuela 

 (Rivas, 1963). Scaled sardines are one of the 

 clupeid species that may have potential to 

 support reduction fisheries in the tropical 

 Atlantic. 



Eggs and larvae of other species attributed 

 to the genus Harengula have been described. 

 Uchida et al. (1958) described larvae and juve- 

 niles of//, zunasi from Japan, and Takita (1966) 

 described eggs and newly hatched larvae of that 

 species. Whitehead, Boeseman, and Wheeler 



(1966) stated that this species is in fact a 

 Sardinella, based on skeletal characters. Marchal 



(1967) included //. rouxi in his key to some west 

 African clupeid eggs and larvae. Berry (1964a) 

 and Berry and Whitehead (1968) restricted the 

 genus Harengula to members having paired 

 hypomaxillary bones. Neither //. rouxi nor //. 

 zunasi have hypomaxillaries, and both species 

 presumably belong in the genus Sardinella. 



METHODS 



Eggs were collected in surface tows of plankton 

 nets near Miami Beach and in Biscayne Bay, 

 Fla. during 1969 through 1971. A total of 10 

 embryos and 165 larvae from rearing experi- 

 ments were preserved in 5% Formalin*' to describe 



•^Reference to trade names does not imply endorsement 

 by the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. 



Manuscript accepted December 197.3. 

 FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 72, NO. 4, 1974. 



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